THE DAILY WHIP: WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2013

House Meets At:

First Vote Predicted:

Last Vote Predicted:

10:00 a.m.: Morning Hour12:00 p.m.: Legislative Business

Fifteen “One Minutes” per side

1:30 – 2:30 p.m.

3:30 – 4:30 p.m.

H.Res. 339 – Rule providing for consideration of H.R. 2775 – “No Subsidies Without Verification Act” (Rep. Black – Energy and Commerce/Ways and Means) (One Hour of Debate). The Rules Committee has recommended a closed Rule that provides for one hour of general debate, with 40 minutes equally divided and controlled by the Chair and Ranking Member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce and 20 minutes equally divided and controlled between the Chair and Ranking Member of the Committee on Ways and Means. The Rule provides for automatic adoption of an amendment offered by Ms. Black, of Tennessee, to the bill, upon the Rule’s adoption. The amendment would require the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services to verify an applicant's eligibility rather than the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. The Rule also allows one motion to recommit, with or without instructions and waives all points of order against the legislation.

The Rules Committee rejected a motion by Mr. McGovern of Massachusetts to consider H.R. 2775 under an open Rule. Members are urged to VOTE NO.

H.R. 2775 – “No Subsidies Without Verification Act” (Rep. Black – Energy and Commerce/Ways and Means) (One Hour of Debate). This bill would prohibit federal financial assistance from being provided to individuals who purchase health coverage through the new state exchanges until a new, duplicative and unnecessary income verification program is in place. Specifically, no insurance premium tax credits or reductions in cost-sharing would be allowed until the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services verifies the eligibility of all applicants. The bill would create vague standards for the Inspector General, whose office has never performed this type of review. Since the role of the Inspector General is to investigate and conduct oversight on government agencies and not on individuals, under this bill, the Inspector General would essentially need to create an entire new system, which would mean that subsidies and tax credits would not be able to start on January 1, 2014.

The Affordable Care Act is structured to permit advance payment of premium tax credits directly to the Exchange plans so that families obtain real-time assistance instead of waiting for a tax refund after the end of the year. Exchanges are responsible for verifying applicants’ incomes and employer-coverage information in order to accurately determine who is eligible for tax credits and subsidies. H.R. 2775 is unnecessary because the Secretary of Health and Human Services has already put in place an effective and efficient system for verification of eligibility for premium tax credits and cost sharing reductions. Passage of H.R. 2775 would delay tax credits and cost-sharing reductions that will otherwise be provided to millions of Americans, driving up out-of-pocket health care costs for millions of Americans and reducing timely access to much‑needed and long‑denied affordable coverage.

This bill is simply another effort by Republicans to undermine the Affordable Care Actand would essentially be the 41st vote to repeal or defund health reform. The bill would indefinitely undercut one of the central provisions of the health care law – the provision of federal subsidies to ensure that health care coverage is affordable for low- and middle-income households. H.R. 2775 is completely unnecessary because the Department of Health and Human Services already has a strong income verification system in place, as confirmed by the Congressional Budget Office. Members are urged to VOTE NO.

TOMORROW’S OUTLOOKThe GOP Leadership has announced the following schedule for Thursday, September 12: The House will meet at 9:00 a.m. for legislative business. The House is expected to consider of H.J.Res. 59 – Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2014(Rep. Rogers (KY) – Appropriations).

The Daily Quote

“House Republican leaders unveiled a plan Tuesday to keep the government open past Sept. 30, but were scrambling to build support within their own ranks after conservatives savaged the proposal for failing to defund President Obama’s health initiative.… Tea party activists and conservative political groups were unconvinced. For weeks, they have pressed Boehner to shut down the government or refuse to raise the debt limit unless Obama agrees to undermine his signature legislative achievement. On Tuesday, a flurry of angry e-mails from the Club for Growth and the Senate Conservatives Fund flooded Capitol Hill inboxes, threatening to punish lawmakers who support Boehner’s gambit… The noisy protests were hitting the mark with some lawmakers. ‘There’s going to be tremendous pressure on the conference to vote against this idea,’ said Rep. John Fleming (R-La.), who said he would not support the budget bill because Boehner and Cantor refused to commit to push for a one-year delay of Obamacare as part of the forthcoming fight over the federal debt limit.”